Woman Faces Charges For Piercing Cats

A woman in Pennsylvania faces animal cruelty charges after police say she was selling what she describes as “gothic kittens”, cats she pierced in the ears, neck or tail.

35-year-old dog groomer Holly Crawford’s lawyers contend that she wasn’t trying to hurt the cats and used sterilized needles to perform the procedures.

The pierced felines were discovered after police got a tip about the woman selling the cats on EBay.

A woman pretending to buy a cat from Crawford says she asked her how the procedure was done.

Crawford gleefully told her that she used a 14-gauge-needle for the piercings; a needle commonly used on cows because their skin is so thick, and also said that she put rubber bands on the tail of kittens to stop blood flow so their tails would fall off.

Her trial began yesterday with testimony from a veterinarian that described the cats as “maimed” and “disfigured.”